Interchangeable lock and chain stitch sewing-machine.



PATENTED JAN; 9, 1906. W. M. AMMBRMAN.

INTERGHANGEABLE LOOK AND CHAIN STITCH SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY2,1904.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

No. 809,660. PATENTED JAN. 9, 1906. W. M. AMMERMAN.

INTERGHANGEABLE LOCK AND CHAIN STITCH SEWING MACHINE. APPLIOATION FILED MAY 2. 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' WWW awwwm UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM M. AMMERMAN, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE EDXVIN J. TOOF COMPANY, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, A COR- POBATION OF NEW JERSEY.

INTEROHANGEABLE LOCK AND CHAIN STlTCH-SEWlNG-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 9, 1906.

Application filed May 2, 1904. Serial No, 205,883.

To (all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WVILLIAM M. AMMER- MAN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Interchangeable Lock and Chain Stitch Sewing-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of sewing-machines adapted for making either a lock-stitch or a chain-stitch; and it consists of additional improvements in a sewing-machine of the type referred to which forms the subject matter of application, Serial No. 315,667, filed in the United States Patent Office on or about June 28, 1889. The sewing-machine disclosed in said application is a rotary-shuttle lock-stitch sewing-machine of ordinary construction having a chain-stitch device which is inoperative during the operation of the machine in making lock-stitches, but which may be thrown into operation at the will of the operator to render the machine capable of making chain-stitches without the addition, removal, or substitution of any parts, the said chain-stitch device comprising a loop-holder arm having a forked or slotted end which in operation first advances to a position to receive the needle-thread loop after it has been cast off by the looptaker and hold the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle to be entered by the latter and its thread and then recedes to cast off the loop held thereby as the loop-taker engages the succeeding loop thrown out by the needle and draws it through the first loop in the usual manner in the formation of a chain-stitch. l/Vhen the needle-thread loop is drawn up by the take-up subsequent to being cast off by the loop-taker, it is in a slack condition and liable to turn or twist and when the machine is being operated for chain-stitch sewing slip off the end of the loop-holder. As this results in the skipping of stitches, it has been one of the main objects of my present invention to provide a simple and efiective means for preventing possibility of the needlethread loop slipping ofi? the end of the loopholder when drawn up into engagement therewith by the take-up.

T 0 this end my mvention consists in providing a guard that will cooperate with the loop-holder while the latter is in its loopholding position and prevent the thread-loop from slipping or being drawn oil the end of the same. As it is necessary, however, that the thread-loop should be released or cast off by the loop-holder after the succeeding loop has been carried therethrough by the needle, the said guard will preferably be supported in a stationary position so as to cooperate with the loop-holder only when the latter is in its loop-holding osition and become inoperative when the ioop-holder recedes from said position to release the loop.

A further feature of my invention is an improved loop-holder supporting and actuating means that is simple in construction, convenient of adjustment in rendering the loopholder operative or inoperative, and so or ganized and arranged as to occupy a minimum amount of space in the machine.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure l is a front end elevation of a part of a sewingmachine having my invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section of the same on line 2 2 of Fig. 3 looking in the direction indicated by the arrow. Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section on line 3 3 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction indicated by the arrow; and Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 are detail views illustrating the operation of my invention.

Similar reference characters designate like parts in the several figures of the drawings.

My invention is herein shown as applied to a Standard lock-stitch sewing-machine of usual construction and operation, the same embodying the work-plate A, the rotary driving-shaft B, mounted in suitable bearings at the under side of said Work-plate, the rotary loop taker or shuttle C, actuated from said driving-shaft, and the vertically-reciprocating needle 0/. The chain-stitch device used on this machine comprises a loop-holder E, having a forked or slotted end e, and the guard which cooperates with this loop-holder in accordance with my present invention comprises an arm 2 carried at the under side of the usual needle-plate 3 and arranged in a substantially horizontal plane with itsfree end projecting toward the loop-holder, so as to cooperate therewith in a manner as follows: The machine being set in motion to reciprocate the needle and rotate the looptaker, the said needle descends, and as it rises it throws out a loop of thread a to be seized by the beak c of the loop-taker, as shown in Fig. 4, and as said loop-taker continues its rotation and the needle continues to rise the said loop is carried around the body of the loop-taker in the usual manner, as indicated in Fig. 5, until said loop-taker reaches the position shown in Fig. 6, when the loop, having been partially drawn up by the take-up, will be engaged by the loop-holder E and held thereby in an open or distended condition across the pathof movement of the needle, the said loop-holder having been moved forward to such loop engaging and holding position during the described rotation of the loop-taker. When the loop-holder is moved forward to its said loop engaging and holding position, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, its end moves over and upon the arm 2, the end of which presents a guard or stop wall, as indicated in Figs. 6 and 8, to prevent the threadloop being drawn off the end of the loopholder. As the parts continue their operation after having reached the position shown in Fig. 6, the needle will descend into the space between the two prongs at the forked end of the loop-holder and carry its thread through the distended loop held thereby, after which the loop-holder will move back or recede from its loop-holding position in contact with the guard 2, so as to cast off the thread-loop held thereby, as shown in Fig. 7, and the succeeding loop thrown out by the needle will be seized by the loop-taker and drawn through the first loop, which latter is subsequently drawn up and tightened in the work in the usual manner.

The loop-holder E may be actuated to have a reciprocating movement and cooperate with the needle 0/, the loop-taker C, and the guard 2 in the manner described by any suitable means, the means provided for such purpose, as herein shown, comprising a rockshaft 4, journaled in the hanger 5 at the under side of the work-plate, within which the looptaker C and its raceway-frame C are contained, the said rock-shaft being provided with two crank-arms 6 and 7, arranged at opposite sides of the hanger 5, the arm 6 carrying at the end thereof the loop-holder E and the arm 7 being adapted to be removably held in operative engagement with the cam 8 on the shaft B by a spring 9. With these several parts arranged as described rotation of the cam 8 will operate the arm 7 to rock the shaft 4, and thereby impart the desired movements to the connected loop-holder, as before described.

When it is desired to employ the machine for lock-stitch sewing, the loop-holder should be held in a stationary or inoperative position, and as a simple and effective means for doing this in the present case a cam-lever 10 is pivoted to the loop-holder arm 6 for cooperating with some stationary part of the machine, such as the outer edge 11 of the looptaker raceway-frame C, to move the crankarm 7 away from operative engagement with the cam 8, as shown in Fig. 2, and hold the same in such position until it is again desired to employ the machine for chain-stitch sewing, when it will only be necessary to turn the lever 10 back from its position of locking engagement with the surface 11, whereupon the arm 7 will be automatically returned to its operative position in contact with the cam 8 under the action of the spring 9.

IVhat I claim is 1. In a sewing-machine, the combination with a reciprocating needle, a loop-taker, a forked loop holder operative for receiving the needle-thread loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, and means for actuating the loop-holder, of a guard cooperating with the said loop-holder when in loop-holding position for retaining the thread-loop thereon.

2. In a sewing-machine, the combination with a reciprocating needle, a loop-taker, a forked loop-holder operative for receiving the needle-thread loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, and means for actuating the loopholder, of a stationary guard cooperating with the said loop-holder when in loop-holding position for retaining the thread-loop thereon.

3. In a sewing-machine, the combination with a reciprocating needle, a loop-taker, a forked loopholder operative for receiving the needle-thread loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, and means for actuating the loopholder, of a guard carried by the needle-plate of the sewin '-machine cooperating with the said loop-hoIder when in loopholding position for retaining the thread-loop thereon.

4. In a sewing-machine, the combination with a reciprocating needle, a loop-taker, a reciprocating forked loop-holder operative for receiving the needle-thread loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condi tion across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, and means for actuating the loop-holder, of a stationary guard cooperating with the said loop-holder when in loop-holding position for retaining the thread-loop thereon.

5. In a sewing-machine, the combination with the needle and a loop-taker, of a forked loop-holder operative for receiving the needlethreacl loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, means for actuating the loop-holder, and a cam-lever carried by said loop-holder for cooperating with a stationary part of the machine to hold the loop-holder in an inoperative position.

6. In a sewing-machine, the combination with the needle and a loop-taker, of a forked loop-holder operative for receiving the needlethread loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, a rock-shaft carrying said loop-holder, and means for operating said rocleshaft.

7. In a sewing-mach1ne, the combination with the needle and a loop-taker, of a forked loop-holder operative for receiving the needlethread loop after it has been released by the loop-taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, a rock-shaft carrying said loop-holder and having a crank-arm, and means for engaging said crank-arm to operate the rockshaft.

8. In a sewing-machine, the combination with the bed-plate thereof having a hanger at its under side, a rotary loop-taker supported in said hanger, and a reciprocating needle, of a forked loop-holder operative for receiving the needle-thread loop after it has been released by the loop taker and holding the same in an open or distended condition across the path of the needle and thereafter releasing the loop subsequent to the passage thereinto of the needle, a rock-shaft supported by the hanger and having the said loop-holder and a crank-arm attached thereto at opposite sides of said hanger, and means for engaging said crank-arm to operate the rock-shaft and connected loop-holder.

Signed at New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, this 29th day 01 April, A. D. 1904.

WILLIAM M. AMMERMAN.

Witnesses:

GEORGE H. BEEBE, JoHN T. IVIUNIGDE. 

